First Derivatives are UK Tech Company of the Year

Added By: Columba O'Hare

Published: 08 November 2017

First Derivatives have taken home a prestigious Tech Company of the Year Award in the UK Tech Awards earlier this month and Chairman, Seamus Keating was on hand at the presentations to accept the award on behalf of the Newry company.

First Derivatives won their award in recognition of the company being “a fully accountable, well managed business that has already gained recognition from analysts and investors, but will also have outstanding long-term growth potential, with a sound strategy in place to ensure successful delivery of its commercial advantages and build shareholder value,”

Winners include companies and individuals in virtual reality, robotic automation and payments including James Dyson named tech CEO of the year.

More than 500 nominations were made across the UK tech awards categories this year, with the winners announced at an awards dinner in London. The awards, a joint venture between PwC and Ford Sinclair Ltd in association with Silicon Valley Bank, recognise the efforts of innovative public and private UK tech companies and individuals.

Jass Sarai, UK technology leader at PwC, commented “The appetite for deals activity we’re seeing in the market along with the number and quality of nominations received for the UK tech awards this year highlight the strength and breadth of our technology industry at the moment. This is testament in part to the support network and developing ecosystems now in place for early stage and growing businesses, but also to the ambitions and risks taken by our entrepreneurs.

“We need to ensure that we continue not only to take these risks, but also to share the lessons learnt with the next generation of innovators to maintain our leading position at a global level. In these uncertain times, the technology industry has an important role to play in promoting STEM skills to help bring through the leaders of tomorrow and continuing to work with government to secure continued access to global talent.”

Rosh Wijayarathna, director of corporate banking at Silicon Valley Bank, added “We are delighted to support the UK tech awards which is a real highlight of the season. 2017 has been another strong year for the UK innovation ecosystem and to be nominated in such a vibrant sector is a fantastic achievement. On behalf of Silicon Valley Bank, I would like to congratulate all of this year’s winners – each of your businesses are remarkable.

“Silicon Valley Bank is solely dedicated to serving the needs of innovation and life science businesses at every life stage. This year's awards are a testament to the leadership, talent and IP of the industry we serve and we look forward to working with all of our clients, future clients and partners in 2018 and beyond.”